Festivals in Uzbekistan 2027: dates and how to plan a trip around them
Places in this article: Samarkand · Bukhara · Khiva · Tashkent
On 9 August 2026, 259 people in Khiva bit into melons at the same moment, tasting more than ten varieties, and set a Guinness World Record for the largest melon tasting. That is the fun side of festivals in Uzbekistan. The hard side is that many dates are announced only a few weeks ahead.
We live in Tashkent and build trips around these events every year. Here is the 2027 calendar as it stands: what is already fixed, when the rest usually happens, and which favourites skip 2027 altogether.
Uzbekistan festival calendar 2027 at a glance
| Event | Where | 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| Ramazon Hayit | Whole country | About 9–10 March (moves with the moon) |
| Navruz | Whole country | 21 March, a Sunday |
| Tashkent International Marathon | Tashkent | Spring; 5 April in 2026 |
| Kurban Hayit | Whole country | About 16–17 May (moves with the moon) |
| Silk and Spices Festival | Bukhara | Late May or June; 6–8 June in 2025 |
| Melon Festival | Khiva | Early August; 7–9 August in 2026 |
| Bukhara Biennial | Bukhara | 3 September – 21 November |
| Boysun Bahori | Baysun | Not in 2027; next edition expected in 2028 |
| Did you know? Khorezm's Lazgi dance is on UNESCO's heritage list Lazgi, the dance of Khorezm, was inscribed by UNESCO in 2019. It mirrors the sounds of nature and feelings of love and joy, and paintings at the ancient site of Toprak-Kala suggest centuries-old roots. Read more → International Dance Festival | Khiva | Not in 2027; next on 25–30 April 2028 |
Where the 2027 date is not out yet, the table gives the dates of the last edition. We follow the announcements and confirm the exact days when we book your trip.
Navruz in Uzbekistan: 21 March 2027
Navruz, the spring new year, is a public holiday on 21 March. In 2027 it falls on a Sunday. Navruz is on UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage, which Uzbekistan shares with twelve other countries.
The dish of the day is sumalak. Sprouted wheat and water cook in a huge pot from evening until morning, and the people around it take turns to stir and make wishes. In the morning the sweet brown paste is shared with neighbours and friends.
Our Navruz in Bukhara tour runs on fixed dates, 18 to 25 March, and puts you in Bukhara on the day itself: a walk through the festive city, an introduction to Navruz traditions with sumalak and national sweets, and a festive dinner in the evening. The route also covers Khiva, Samarkand and Tashkent. What the rest of the month is like is in our guide to Uzbekistan in March.
Tashkent International Marathon
The Tashkent marathon is dedicated to Navruz and runs in spring: on 13 April in 2025 and on 5 April in 2026. In 2026 it started in front of Humo Arena, with distances from the full marathon down to a 5 km mass run, and more than 15,000 runners from over 30 countries were expected. Registration is on prorun.uz; the 2027 date is not out yet.
We suggest flying in two days before the race and heading off on the route afterwards: the Uzbekistan's high-speed train: Tashkent to Samarkand in 2 hours 30 minutes, Tashkent to Bukhara in about 4 hours. Tickets are tied to your passport. Read more → fast train takes you from Tashkent to Samarkand in 2 hours 30 minutes. The 8-day classic tour fits well after race day.
Silk and Spices Festival 2027 in Bukhara
For three days the old town of Bukhara turns into a fair. The 2025 edition, the 21st, opened with a procession from The fortress-residence of the rulers of Bukhara on a high artificial hill: the oldest structure in the city. Read more → fortress to Did you know? Bukhara's ponds were once its water supply Pools like Lyabi-Hauz, dug around 1620 and 46 × 36 m, were the city's main source of water. Most were filled in during the 1920s–30s because they spread disease; Lyabi-Hauz survived. Read more → and filled the town with spice stalls, silk and cotton fabrics, master classes, a fashion show, a Rice cooked in a kazan with carrots, onions and meat: the dish of every Uzbek celebration. Each region cooks it its own way. contest and a gala concert. More than 350 local craftspeople and over 50 from about ten other countries took part.
That edition ran on 6–8 June 2025; earlier ones were held in late May. In 2026 Bukhara hosted its other craft festival, the International Gold Embroidery and Jewellery Festival, on 15–17 May. The Silk and Spices 2027 dates have not been announced yet.
Bukhara is about 4 hours from Tashkent on the fast train. Plan at least two nights: see the main monuments in the morning with our Bukhara highlights tour and keep the afternoons and evenings for the festival. Short on time? Try Bukhara in 2 days by night train.
Boysun Bahori 2027 and Lazgi: both return in 2028
Boysun Bahori, the international folklore festival in the Baysun district of Surkhandarya, has been held every two years since 2022. The latest edition ran on 1–7 May 2026 at the Boysun Bahori tourist complex, with folklore groups from more than 50 countries, wrestling, horse games and kupkari, and craft exhibitions. So there is no Boysun Bahori in 2027; the next one is expected in 2028.
Baysun is worth the trip without the festival. UNESCO lists the cultural space of Boysun district as intangible heritage. Our Wild Expedition: Baysun is a private 4×4 trip with Derbent, the Iron Gates pass, Teshik-Tash and the Sangardak waterfall, and it runs on any dates in season.
Lazgi, the Khorezm dance, is also on UNESCO's intangible heritage list. Its international festival takes place in Khiva every two years on 25–30 April. The third edition, in April 2026, brought dancers and guests from over 30 countries to Did you know? People still live inside Khiva's museum city Itchan Kala packs more than 50 historic monuments and about 250 old houses inside clay walls 8–10 m high and 5–6 m thick, and families still live and work in its lanes. Read more →; the next one is on 25–30 April 2028.
Summer and autumn: melons, art and music
Melon Festival in Khiva
In August the Khorezm region brings its melons to Khiva: decorated pavilions, Khorezm breads, crafts, folklore groups and evening concerts at Ichan-Kala and A new tourist complex on the shore of Lake Govuk, a short drive from Ichan-Kala, opened in May 2025: 17 hotels and guest houses, a 3,000-seat amphitheatre, restaurants, a bazaar under domes and a canal with gondolas. Read more →. The festival ran on 8–10 August 2025 and on 7–9 August 2026, when it drew 186,000 visitors, 36,000 of them from abroad. The 2027 dates are not out yet; early August is the usual time.
Khiva in August averages 34 °C in the afternoon, so walk the old town early and late. The fast train leaves Tashkent at 07:00 every day except Sunday and reaches Khiva at about 14:30. Our Khiva in 3 days trip covers the town by night train, and our article on Arda Khiva describes the complex where the evening concerts are held.
Bukhara Biennial 2027: 3 September – 21 November
The second Bukhara Biennial of contemporary art runs from 3 September to 21 November 2027. It uses restored caravanserais, madrasas, bathhouses and squares of the old town, and some of them will open to the public for the first time. The first edition, in 2025, drew about 1.8 million visitors.
The weather suits it too: Bukhara averages 30 °C in the afternoon in September and 23 °C in October. Add a couple of days in Bukhara to the 11-day classic tour, and you see the city's monuments and the biennial in one trip.
Sharq Taronalari in Samarkand
Sharq Taronalari, the international music festival founded in 1997, is held every two years in Samarkand at the end of August. The 13th edition ran on 26–30 August 2024 with performers from about 80 countries. The date of the next one has not been announced; we will add it here as soon as it is. For the city itself, start with our Samarkand highlights tour.
Ramadan, Kurban Hayit and New Year 2027
Ramazon Hayit, which ends Ramadan, and Kurban Hayit are public holidays in Uzbekistan. They follow the lunar calendar. In 2027 Ramadan is expected to start around 8 February, Ramazon Hayit to fall on 9 or 10 March and Kurban Hayit on 16 or 17 May. The exact days are announced shortly before, and we confirm them when we plan your trip. More in our guide to etiquette in Uzbekistan.
New Year, 1 January, is a public holiday too. We run three fixed-date New Year tours, each with a festive dinner on 31 December: New Year in Uzbekistan (27 December – 3 January), New Year in Bukhara (30 December – 2 January) and New Year in Samarkand (30 December – 3 January).
How to plan a trip around a festival in Uzbekistan
- Build the route around the festival day. Arrive the day before and keep one spare day, in case the programme shifts.
- Buy train tickets early. Sales open 60 days before departure on eticket.railway.uz, and for festival dates we buy on the first days. Our guide to trains in Uzbekistan explains how it works.
- Book the old town early. In Bukhara and Khiva the festivals happen in the historic centre, so a hotel within walking distance saves you taxis at night.
In short
- Fixed for 2027: Navruz on 21 March (a Sunday) and the Bukhara Biennial from 3 September to 21 November.
- Silk and Spices in Bukhara: 2027 dates not out yet; the last edition ran on 6–8 June 2025.
- Boysun Bahori and the Lazgi festival are held every two years; the next editions are in 2028.
- The Khiva melon festival is in early August, and the Tashkent marathon is in spring.
- Ramazon Hayit (about 9–10 March) and Kurban Hayit (about 16–17 May) move with the moon.
